


What Could Have Been

by SeriousSiriusBlack



Category: DCU, Robin (Comics), Young Justice (Cartoon), Young Justice - All Media Types
Genre: Birdflash - Freeform, Fluff, Idiots in Love, Love, M/M, Romance, slowburn, soft
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2019-11-19
Updated: 2020-09-15
Packaged: 2021-02-13 12:20:24
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 14
Words: 20,609
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/21494194
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/SeriousSiriusBlack/pseuds/SeriousSiriusBlack
Summary: The Flying Graysons never died. Dick Grayson is a performer at Haly's circus with a brand new solo act on the outskirts of Central City. The whole world is different now, but how much has really changed after Dick meets Wally West, the nephew of a reporter doing a piece on the circus?
Relationships: Dick Grayson/Wally West
Comments: 9
Kudos: 173





	1. New Beginnings

Dick Grayson was ready as he’d ever be. This performance was the same as his last two, only new anticipation, new crowds, new screaming and cheering. Besides that? All routine. He swung and flung himself as his muscle memory allowed and beamed as he stuck his landing perfectly. Well… almost perfectly. A slight miscalculation and he’d rolled on his ankle. Wincing through the pain, he stood and waved to the cheering crowd before the end of the night, blinded by the bright lights and flashing cameras.

Out back after the show, Dick sat on an overturned bucket as he wrapped his ankle, gritting his teeth. He’d done just fine on solo performances before… this was only his third one. He didn’t want to be on probation by order of his parents for messing up this time. They were gonna kill him. He heard a voice from around the corner and quickly shoved all of his supplies under the bucket.

“Back here is where we store… some of our talents, apparently. Iris, meet Dick Grayson,” smiled a publicist Dick recognized from their last location. He just couldn’t remember his name… “Dick, Iris and Wally West. Iris is writing a collum in the paper for us.”

“He’s a tagalong. Nice to meet you,” Iris said, reaching out to shake his hand.

Dick took it and shook it gently and reached for Wally’s, who took it and shook with impressive speed.

“Dude, I saw you up there tonight! You totally killed it! You used to fly with Mary and John Grayson, right? You’re basically famous!”

“Uhh yeah. I still do. Just got my own solo act, though,” Dick explained, blushing. He wasn’t really used to interacting with fans.

“Back off, Wally,” Iris said, putting a hand on his shoulder. “I’m sure Dick isn’t out here to be pestered by his fan club,” she said warmly with a teasing tone. 

“No, no, it’s fine,” Dick assured. He looked over his shoulder when he heard voices and panicked. “Um actually it’s great! You should come with me, I’ve got something to show you,” he said, grabbing Wally by the arm and leading him away quickly. He looked over his shoulder and ducked behind a shed with Wally, breathing a sigh of relief. “I- Sorry. I’m kind of avoiding someone. Two someones…” he said, biting his lip.

“What? Who? Why?” Wally asked, looking around the corner and seeing nothing.

“My parents. I screwed up my ankle tonight. They’re gonna kill me when they find out. I’d honestly rather hide it and suffer through the pain,” he mumbled.

“What? Let me see,” Wally said, crouching down and reaching for Dick’s wrapped ankle. He took it gently and made a brief inspection. “Keep it wrapped, iced, and elevated. You should be good by the end of the week, I think.”

Dick sat down carefully and crossed his legs, leaning against the barn. “How can you tell?”

“I’ve got a lot of experience looking after sprained ankles. I uh- like to run. I’m on my school’s track team! Not to flex, but I definitely hold the school records. I’ve dealt with plenty of sprained ankles in my time,” he said, sitting down and leaning back on his palms.

“Thanks…” Dick said softly. “I was worried I’d messed it up bad. I totally jacked up my landing… My parents probably already know just from watching. It wasn’t the only thing that could’ve used a little work.” Dick looked over at Wally. It was almost a bit strange seeing someone his age that was just… a normal kid. A normal kid on the track team at his school. Everyone surrounding Dick was a performer or at least had 10 or more years on him. He didn’t mind sitting and talking with someone like him. Well...closer to him than anyone else.

Wally shrugged. “I couldn’t tell. Then again, I’m not a trained acrobat, but I think you killed it tonight. You had the crowd on their feet. You ever get scared up there, with no net? All of those people watching you in anticipation… I think I’d freak.”

Dick thought about it a moment before speaking. “I guess not. I’ve been doing it as far back as I can remember. It’s in my blood. And it’s something I train for and am careful about. I guess it’s always in the back of my mind, but I never think about it. I can’t afford to. That’d be the moment I’d mess up.”

Just a moment later, Iris was there, greeting them with a smile. “Time to go, Wally. I’m just about wrapped up with my work here,” she said, tucking a notebook into her purse.

“It was nice to meet you, Dick. Good luck with your ankle,” Wally said with a smile before standing and walking off with Iris.


	2. City Life

Dick watched in longing as Wally left. He spent the rest of the night wishing he’d gotten Wally’s number. And the next morning. And his next practice. Once again, he caught his ankle on the landing and let out a yelp. Within seconds, Mary was next to him inspecting his ankle.

“Dick! Why were you practicing on a bad ankle? You could’ve gotten seriously hurt or missed your landing completely!” she scolded, shaking her head. 

By the time he was down, John was there with her, scolding his son for practicing on an injury. But Dick knew it wasn’t just the injury that had messed him up that day; his mind was a little preoccupied.

His mind remained preoccupied that night and the next morning. Maybe it would’ve remained preoccupied had his ankle not swollen massively and ached all night. Next thing he knew he was in the car on the way to a Central City hospital listening to his dad’s lecture about practicing on an injury. Well, half listening.

In the waiting room, Dick sat patiently, watching a news story from this morning about The Flash and Kid Flash. Dick knew little about heroes to begin with, but he definitely didn’t remember there being a Kid Flash.

“He’s not too bad, huh?” came a voice from beside him.

Dick snapped his head up and turned to see Wally. His face lit up and he smiled brightly. “Wally! What are you doing here?”

“I need stitches. Got a cut on my leg this morning from a hurdle,” he said, gesturing to the thick, tight bandage wrapped around his leg. “It’s not bad, though. Already starting to heal! Wait- why are you here? Is it your ankle? I thought it was only a sprain…”

“It was. I practiced on it too hard yesterday and now… now I’m here. And in a lot of trouble,” he sighed.

“Aw, dude. That sucks. Well, I hope it’s nothing too bad. You have performance dates all over the posters!!”

“Don’t remind me. My parents aren’t the only ones upset with me,” he sighed. “But um.. I’m actually really glad you’re here. Not because of your leg. I’m just… glad to see you again. I really wished I had gotten your number or- or something,” he said shyly.

Wally grinned and pulled out his phone. He opened a new contact, typed something, and passed his phone over to Dick, who took it gingerly. He grinned at the name in the contact: “Boy Wonder.” He wasn’t sure how true it was, but it was for sure what all of the posters had said. He dialed in his number before passing it back and smiling softly.

“Thanks. I’ll be sure to text sometime soon,” Wally said, tucking his phone away right as Dick’s name was called. 

Dick stood carefully and smiled at Wally before following the nurse.

\----------

“It’s nothing that can’t be handled, kid. Gonna take at least two weeks to heal properly. It’s had a significant amount of strain on it. You just need to keep it iced, elevated, and get lots of rest. No strenuous activity.”

“B-But I can’t just not be on it for two weeks! I have to perform!” he protested before his father lay a hand on his shoulder.

“Dick. It’s for the best. We’ll get things worked out back home. Your mom and I will fill in your slot. You need to rest.”

Dick left the doctors feeling absolutely defeated. He finally had his own solo act and now it was gone, just like that. He felt a buzz in his pocket and pulled out his phone. He didn’t use it often, and it was pretty outdated at that. 

‘Hey, boy wonder. Done at doc’s yet? Please tell me they’re letting you back out there. -WW’ the message read.

‘Not a chance. Doctor said two weeks, which means two weeks until I’m practicing again. Which means four weeks until I’m ever allowed to perform again. Got your stitches yet?’ Dick typed and sighed, leaning his head against the window. These next few weeks were going to be miserable.

He felt another buzz in his pocket. ‘Buzzkills! I gotta see you again before you guys leave town :( All patched up. I’ll be better in a short while. Hey, that means I’ll be benched too! No running for me until the stitches are out. Wanna crash a cafe tomorrow?’ Dick smirked at the message. The thought of missing practice sucked, but he wouldn’t mind missing it with Wally. 

‘That sounds fun. I just kind of need a ride. I won’t be able to get one from my parents if they’re gonna be practicing to fill my empty spot’ he typed, biting his lip.

‘Don’t worry, man. I’ve got you covered. See you tomorrow at two. pm.’

Dick tucked his phone away. Two o’clock.

“Dick, I know you’re probably sick of me and your mom going on and on about safety but I just want to have a little heart to heart with you. This work is dangerous, you know that. But… your mother and I trust you. Even though that trust is there, it doesn’t mean we don’t worry. I just want you to know that we have your back. We don’t want you to hide things from us. I know all of this is so important to you but… just be careful, son,” his dad said softly, glancing over at Dick every once in a while while still paying attention to the road as he spoke.

“I’m fine, Dad…” he mumbled quietly, avoiding eye contact. “I- I’ve just worked so hard. And when I messed up like that I was so angry with myself. And I was afraid you’d be angry too…”

Mr. Grayson parked the car and pulled the keys from the ignition, looking over to Dick. “We’re not angry. I think you should’ve told us earlier, but we want what’s best for you. Always.”

“In that case… How do you feel about me meeting up with a friend in the city tomorrow?”


	3. Two O'Clock

Dick looked in his wardrobe the next day for anything kind of nice. He’d never really cared about his clothes, but now he was going to meet up with Wally and he wanted to look at least a little presentable. 

He pulled out a red shirt and sighed, accepting it as his best choice as he threw it on over a pair of jeans. He waited outside and checked the time on his phone. Wally said he and his uncle Barry would be there in five minutes ten minutes ago. Right as Dick started to worry, a small car pulled up with Wally leaning out of the window.

“Hop in, Boy Wonder!” he shouted with a big, dorky smile.

Dick grinned and got in the back seat, strapping in safely. “Hey, Wally,” he said with a grin. “And…”

“You can call me Barry,” Barry said. “I’m Wally’s uncle,” he said, reaching over to ruffle Wally’s hair, with great protest.

“Not cool! I put gel in today,” Wally huffed, slouching in his seat. It only took him a minute to perk back up. “How’s your ankle, Dick? Please tell me it’s wrapped and you’re resting off of it…”

Dick chuckled at Wally’s hair, sticking up in all directions. It always looked a little wild considering how bright it was, but the ruffling didn’t do it any favors. It was kind of adorable in a way. He nodded and smiled softly. “It hurts, but my parents aren’t as mad as I thought they’d be. I’m still alive, and that’s more than I could’ve asked for from them after that,” he sighed, shaking his head.

Dick turned to look out the window as they reached the outskirts of the city. “I always thought it was beautiful here… We visited once when I was young, but I haven’t been back until now.”

Wally turned to look at Dick wearing an expression he couldn’t quite read. “I keep forgetting… Traveling circus.”

Dick nodded. “I’m never in one place for too long. Couple months at the most.” He shrugged and let out a breath. It wasn’t something he ever planned on letting out outside of the pages of his journal, tucked safely away under his mattress. 

Wally was silent for the rest of the ride, which Dick didn’t have a problem with. He rested his head against the window and watched the city pass until they pulled up to a small shop on a not-so-busy street corner.

Wally was the first to hop out of the car and Dick followed shortly after. 

“Thanks, Uncle Barry!” Wally called and waved as Barry drove away.

“We’re here alone?” Dick asked, turning to look around at the surrounding buildings. He’d never been alone in the city before. 

“Yeah, is that okay?” Wally asked, turning to Dick, who nodded slowly.

“Yeah. I just… first time.”

“There’s a first time for everything. Like being alone in the city. Or being alone in the city and getting the best food you’ve ever had.” Wally linked their arms together and lead Dick into the shop.

It was a quaint little cafe with comfortable seating and soft music playing over the speakers. A couple of people were scattered about chatting, but it wasn’t overwhelming at all. Dick smiled at the smell of coffee.

“Impressed?” Wally asked, taking Dick’s hand and bringing him to the counter. Wally rattled off an order while Dick looked at their hands. Wally’s hand was soft. The contact felt so foreign yet so familiar to Dick. 

Suddenly they were moving again and Dick looked to Wally. “What did you order?” he asked.

“Only the best food and drink the place has to offer. I hope you like coffee.”

Dick nodded and smiled warmly. Wally let go of his hand when their drinks and small plates were set at the counter so they could grab it and move to a seat. They picked two comfortable seats next to each other and placed their drinks and plates down on the table in front of them.

Bringing the hot mug to his lips, Dick took a delicate sip of the drink. He looked to Wally and nodded. “This is-” Dick was interrupted by a loud crashing sound from outside. He whipped his head around to see a blast of something shooting across the street through the cafe window.

Wally jumped up and protectively put a hand on Dick’s shoulder. “Stay here,” he said, giving Dick’s shoulder a little squeeze before rushing out the door. Dick barely even processed what had happened, leaving him no time to shout “Where the hell are you going!?” before Wally was gone.

Dick looked around at the other fearful patrons of the cafe before being impulsive and rushing out after Wally. He looked around rapidly, commotion filling the once quiet street as people ran into shops shouting. Looking toward the direction of the blast he’d seen earlier, he instantly recognized the villain from the news: Captain Cold. Just as he recognized him a red streak flew by, followed by a yellow one.

He almost let himself get wrapped up in the action, but he had to not be a fanboy and focus on finding Wally. Where had he run off to? “Wally!” Dick shouted, running down the street. His attention was snapped ahead of him as he heard a loud cracking down and something was coming his way. He barely had time to react, time to dodge. He let instinct take over and launched himself into an aerial cartwheel to dodge the blast.

He let out a cry when his leg gave out from under him, having landed mostly on his sore ankle. In an instant, Kid Flash was at his side. “Dick! Are you okay? You need to get out of here!”

Dick was taken aback by Kid Flash. “I- How do you know my name?” Another blast sounded from behind them and Dick was suddenly on the other side of the street in Kid Flash’s arms.

“Uh- posters! You’re all over the city. Just.. don’t move. We’ll take care of this. Maybe do move, actually. You should go. Or- Just don’t do anything stupid!” Kid Flash was back in the battle just like that, leaving Dick standing in awe. He was snapped back into reality quickly when another blast sounded from the fight. Shit. Wally. He still needed to find Wally.

He limped in the opposite direction of the fight, hoping that that was where the other boy was. “Wally!” he shouted, trying not to panic. It was loud and some people were still screaming, and god where the hell was Wally?!

Dick was starting to panic. He could barely breathe and was overwhelmed by the sounds and his fear and his worry for Wally and the searing pain shooting up his leg. He collapsed on the concrete sidewalk and curled into a ball, protected his head. He didn’t know what else to do. All he could think about was Wally, probably panicking just as much as he was somewhere; if he was even okay to begin with.

Dick was unsure how much time passed him crying vulnerably on the sidewalk, shaking through his pain and fear. He felt someone touch his shoulder and he flinched, looking up cautiously to see Wally leaning over him, wearing a worried expression on his face.

“Wally! Where did you go!?” Dick asked, launching himself up and wrapping Wally in a tight hug.

Wally returned the hug. “Hey… It’s okay, Dick. I’m fine. I… I went to go get help. To get the Flash. And Kid Flash. They fixed everything,” he said gently.

Dick nuzzled his face into the crook of Wally’s neck and shook his head. “It- It was horrible, Wally. The sounds and- and Kid Flash came and- and my ankle-” Dick had almost forgotten the pain until his brain shoved the worry of Wally away, leaving the agony front and center. He pulled his pant leg back and gingerly unwrapped his leg, which was now more swollen and tender than ever. It looked bad.

Wally bit his lip. “Let’s… Let’s get you out of here, Dick. Uncle Barry’s right across the street.” He scooped his arms under Dick and lifted him in bridal position to avoid any more damage to Dick’s ankle.

Dick still couldn’t read the look on Wally’s face. He could barely look Dick in the eyes. He closed his eyes, trying to ignore his own pain and that pained look.

“I’m sorry I left you, Dick. Guess you’re not used to your home being under constant attack…” he said quickly, shame hidden in the undertones of his voice. He gently placed Dick in the back of the car and strapped him in. He gave his uncle an unsteady look before getting in the seat next to Dick.

Dick wrapped his arms around himself and rested his head against the window. He was silent for the whole ride to… the hospital. His insides twisted, afraid of his state and what his parents were going to say. He knew they couldn’t afford another bill, they could barely afford the one from his last visit.

“Wally, I can’t-” Dick started before Wally cut him off.

“You need to get your ankle checked again. It-” Wally cleared his throat and avoided Dick’s eyes as he helped him out of the car. “It wouldn’t have happened if I stayed with you. You came out after me. I’m sorry…” he said, his voice fading as he spoke. “You should probably call your parents.”

Dick was snapped out of a quiet trance and he pulled his phone out to dial his mom’s number.

“Hi, mom,” He said softly when the phone picked up. “I’m at the hospital with Wally… My ankle. It’s worse... No, his uncle’s here too… It- I was in an attack with Captain Cold… I’m fine. Mostly… No, mom, I promise… Okay. I love you too.” He looked down at his phone as he hung up and left his gaze lingering.

Wally watched with his lips pressed together before picking Dick up gently again. He was so light… He felt like he was carrying a wounded deer into the waiting room, the weight on his chest only growing heavier with each step he took. He set Dick in a chair and smoothed his hair back. Barry went to the desk for paperwork.

Dick let out a shaky breath as he stared down at his hands in his lap. “I was so scared, Wally,” he said, his voice barely above a whisper. “I almost got hit. Then I froze. Ironic, right?” he said dryly, gaze unwavering.

There was so much Wally wanted to say and apologize for, but he bit his lip and hesitated. “I’m sorry, Dick. I’m sorry I left you. I’m so sorry…” he trailed off, shaking his head. He tried to ignore the TV in the corner of the room reporting the story of the attack as the silence between the two consumed them.


	4. It's Supposed to Smell Disgusting

It had been a week since Dick had seen Wally or responded to any of his texts. He’d been in bed with his foot in a hot, sweaty boot. He would be in it for weeks, meaning a big pause button on Dick’s solo act, a lot of sympathy from his parents, and a lot of time alone as they trained. He didn’t mind the time alone. After everything that happened, he didn’t mind laying in bed numbly watching videos on his phone while Wally’s texts lit it up every once in a while.

He didn’t want to talk to Wally. Not out of anger or frustration… He was just felt so numb and helpless in his stupid boot. Nothing had been broken, but it didn’t mean it wasn’t a pain in his ass.

He sat up from his position in bed and sighed, running a hand through his messy, day-three hair. It was getting a little out of hand, but he lacked the willpower to bring himself to shower for the past few days until now; he was starting to smell bad enough that even he was getting uncomfortable.

After showering in cold, uncomfortable water, Dick got out dripping and shivering. He was quick to get dressed again, but his hair was still dripping wet when he heard a knock on the door. He walked over slowly, limping on his leg that he had yet to put the boot back on, and opened the door.

Wally stood on the other side, shifting his weight from foot to foot. “Hey, man. Can we talk? I know you’ve been ignoring me and I kind of didn’t want to bother you after everything, but I also couldn’t live with myself if I just stopped trying so… I’m here now,” he said softly, finally looking up to meet Dick’s eyes.

Dick’s gaze was hesitant, and he kept breaking it every few seconds to look at the ground. “Sure,” he said softly, stepping aside to let Wally in to his tiny home. He could feel the redness on his cheeks. He was ashamed that he had ignored Wally for so long, but he didn’t know how to handle… anything. 

He closed the door behind them and lead Wally to the couch when he sat, resting his hands on his lap.

Wally hesitated before putting a hand on Dick’s shoulder. “Will you please look at me? I-I’m sorry about what happened in the city. I didn’t know-”

“When I collapsed on that street… I felt so helpless. I felt out of power and scared,” Dick said, his eyes distant. “Now I just always feel scared. Anything like that could happen again and I would just fall helpless with nobody to save me. And I’ve been so in my head lately and it’s pulling me apart, Wally.”

“Dick…” Wally looked at him, eyes glassy. He pulled Dick into a hug and held him there, breathing softly and closing his eyes. He had an idea of just about the only thing that might help Dick get back to normal.

\----------

Wally dropped his bag on the floor in the locker room, and Dick looked around, dropping his own. “Um… It smells bad in here,” Dick said, making a face.

“It’s a boxing gym. It’s supposed to smell disgusting!” Wally said with a smile, bouncing on the balls of his feet. “Come on, it smells a little better inside.” Wally grabbed Dick by the arm and lead him into the gym, which admittedly smelled slightly better than the locker room. He sat on a bench and pulled out a hand wrap. He took one of Dick’s hands and started wrapping it carefully.

“Wally, I’m still not so sure about this,” Dick said, looking around. They were much smaller than all of the other big, intimidating men in the gym. It wasn’t a reassuring sight.

“Trust me on this,” Wally said, taking Dick’s other hand to wrap it. “Self defense never hurt anybody but the other guy,” Wally beamed.

Dick couldn’t help but smile softly at Wally’s smile. He watched Wally wrap his fist with fixed intensity and made a fist when it was finished. Wally started wrapping his own fists before standing and throwing a quick punch.

“Get up Grayson. First thing’s first, no gloves, just starting pointers. You gotta keep your chin tucked. It’s gonna want to come up when you fight, but don’t let it.”

Dick mirrored the motion Wally made of ducking his chin and throwing a punch. He felt ridiculous, but they definitely weren’t the only ones.

“Next. Keep your elbows tucked in. Save yourself some energy and keep your body defended. Next, step with your punches so you’re not reaching,” Wally said, demonstrating the motions to Dick, who watched intently. “Now get some gloves. We’re getting started for real.”

\----------

Dick groaned as he fell on the couch. “My body hurts in ways it never has,” he mumbled as Wally passed him a glass of water.

“Acrobatics and boxing use a lot of different muscles,” Wally said, joining him by his side.

“Yeah, yeah. I’m gonna have to get you on the ropes as payback for that.” Dick looked over to Wally. He looked content and calm despite the hair still stuck to his forehead. Wally gave him a side-eyed smirk that made his heart do a somersault. 

“Payback?! That was an important lesson!” Wally protested, throwing a hand up in the air.

Dick lowered his eyes and smiled to himself. “Thanks, Wally.” Wally doing all of this for him meant a lot to Dick. He’d been scared and defenseless before. Now he felt different. It helped that his ankle wasn’t in as much pain as it had been. Boxing in a boot hadn’t necessarily been a good idea, but Dick definitely didn’t feel so… hopeless, like he had before.

“Anytime. Seriously. Call me. I want to help,” Wally said sincerely, finally wiping the hair off of his forehead. “Now, as promised, I’m showing you Rocky.”

The movie was as good as Wally said it was. Dick didn’t see a whole lot of movies, and Wally had made it his personal mission to catch Dick up on… everything. By the end of it, Dick was curled up on his side, head resting on a couch pillow.

Wally leaned back, hands thrown behind his head and looked over to Dick. “I told you it’s one of the best movies of all time! How about we…” Wally trailed off when he saw Dick laying sound asleep, a look of peace on his face for the first time since the attack. “Sleep,” Wally finished quietly, looking at the clock. It was only eight, and his parents still weren’t home yet, but it didn’t matter to Wally. 

He scooped Dick carefully into his arms and carried him to his room. Wally forgot how light Dick was until he was in his arms again. Despite all of the muscle, he was still so small. And innocent. And pure.

Wally placed Dick down in his bed and pulled the covers over him. The Graysons wouldn’t mind if Dick spent the night, right? He was safe here. And Wally was stupid. He kicked his Kid Flash uniform from the pile of laundry on the floor to his hands and shoved it into his closet. Jeez. Dick couldn’t know. Not after what had happened. Wally would do anything to protect him.


	5. Just the Two of Us

Dick woke up the following morning warm and happy. He sat up from bed and yawned, stretching through the ache after yesterday’s workout out and looking around to realize he was definitely not in his room. His heart raced and he turned his head, looking around before realizing he was in Wally’s room and letting out a breath of relief. He was able to relax for about three seconds right before panic filled him when he realized his parents must be a phone call away from killing him for not being home without warning. 

He looked around for his phone and pressed the power button. Dead. Great. He jumped out of Wally’s bed and raced downstairs, nearly running into Mary West.

“Mrs. West! I- I’m so sorry! I didn’t mean to sleep here! I have to call my parents! They’re gonna freak-”

Mary put a hand on Dick’s shoulder and shook her head with a warm smile. It was so much like Wally’s. “Calm down, Dick. Wally told us when we got home. I called your parents last night. They know you’re okay.”

Dick let out a breath and was finally calm again. “Where’s Wally?” he asked, realizing he had to have slept somewhere else since Dick had taken his bed.

“He’s on the couch in the living room. Why don’t you go wake him up? I’m making you boys some breakfast,” she said, before walking back to the kitchen.

Dick walked quietly into the living room to see Wally sleeping soundly on the couch, cuddled up in one blanket with his head on the couch pillow. Dick kneeled beside the couch and shook Wally’s shoulder gently. “Hey, Wally,” he whispered. “Wake up.”

Wally blinked his eyes open to see Dick and hesitated before reaching under his head, grabbing his pillow, and smacking Dick with it before rolling over on his side and pulling his blanket over his head.

Dick was stunned for only a moment. He stood and plopped on top of Wally, laying his body on top of his. “Wake uuuup, Wally,” he said, pulling the blanket from Wally’s head. His hair was an adorable mess. “Your mom’s making food for us,” he hummed, to which Wally lifted his head to look at Dick again.

“She’s making food for my dad. We just get whatever’s left,” he grumbled, throwing the blanket back over his head.

“Wally,” Dick said, wrapping his arms around Wally and squeezing. “Get up. Get up. Get up.”

Wally groaned and shook his body to try and get Dick off of him, but Dick didn’t budge.

“I’ll let you come over today. You can watch my parents practice. Or you can work on your clown act,” he teased.

Wally threw the blanket over his head for the last time. “Fine. Can you at least get off me, Grayson? You’re so damn heavy,” he said, shaking his head.

Dick got off of him and kneeled back where he had been before. He brushed the hair out of Wally’s face and combed some of it back with his fingers. “You look like a clown,” Dick teased, scrunching up his nose.

“Well you do too! Your hair’s sticking up in every possible direction! And you stink,” Wally grumbled. He would’ve sat up had Dick’s fingers not felt so good in his hair.

“I didn’t get to shower yesterday!” Dick pouted, pulling his hands away.

“No wait, I didn’t mean it,” Wally whined, grabbing one of Dick’s hands and plopping it on his head. “Keep going.”

Dick chuckled. He liked sleepy Wally. Sleepy Wally was soft and warm and secretly cuddly (not that awake Wally wasn’t too). “Are you gonna get up now? I’m hungry. And you’re never not hungry so you should be too, Wallace.”

“Bite me, Richard.”

Dick reached over and pulled the blanket off of Wally, who shouted in protest. Giggling, Dick wrapped the blanket around himself while Wally slid half off the couch, whining.

“You’re a horrible person. You want to see me suffer. You want to see me in pain. You despise my existence. You wish death upon me.”

“The only thing I wish upon you is wakefulness.” 

Wally slid the other half of his body off of the couch with a thump and grunt. He scooted over to Dick on the floor and sat up to pull half of the blanket off of him and cuddle against him so they could share the blanket. He leaned against Dick and closed his eyes again, and Dick shook his head.

“You’re so helpless. I wonder how you wake up every day before noon.”

“He usually doesn’t. Get up, Wallace,” commanded a voice from the door.

Dick looked over his shoulder to see Wally’s dad, who… Dick would’ve remembered meeting if he had before. He had the same fiery red hair as Wally, but it was tinged with streaks of white. And he looked angry. Or maybe just tired. Dick couldn’t really tell, but Wally was up by the time his father was out of the door frame.

“That was your dad?” Dick whispered softly.

Wally nodded, avoiding eye contact. “He’s been on my ass lately.” Wally rolled his eyes. “Whatever. Are we getting food or what?”

Dick hadn’t heard Wally sound so defeated before, but he chose to ignore it for the time being in favor of helping him onto his feet and following him to the kitchen. Wally’s mother had places set for them at the table where Wally’s dad was already eating.

Dick sat at one of the seats. “Thanks for letting me stay the night,” he said softly. He knew they could’ve woken him and kicked him out at any time if they had wanted to.

“Don’t get too used to it,” Wally’s dad spoke, eyeing Wally. “Wally’s behind on his schoolwork. He needs to catch up and not waste his life away on movies and fantasies.”

Dick shifted in his seat. He wasn’t too fond of Wally’s dad. Wally looked like the same thought was going through his mind. Soon enough, though, he was gone from the table and Dick and Wally were left in peace, just the two of them for a while. Wally was still eating by the time Dick had finished.

“You still up to come to the circus today? There’s a show tonight everyone’s practicing for. I can get you IIP seating if you want,” he offered.

“IIP?” Wally asked, eyebrow raised.

“Important-ish Person. Basically a backstage pass without the glamor. But it could be fun.” Dick subconsciously glanced at his boot. He was supposed to be performing tonight. Now that was gone… He bit his lip as he thought.

“You good, man?” Wally asked, looking at Dick with an expression of concern on his face.

“Yeah. Yeah I- I’m good.”

“Well, I think that sounds like a perfect plan.”

\----------

The evening atmosphere was everything Dick wanted it to be. He took Wally’s hand and led him around the back as people filled in for the show, but not before getting a big bucket of popcorn for the both of them to share. He brought Wally up a flight of stairs and reached to grab a platform, lifting himself up with ease and landing on his knees. He reached down to help pull Wally up and then waved a hand in a grand gesture to show Wally the view. 

“Voila,” he said, smiling. “I used to come up here to watch my parents when I was too young to perform.”

Wally looked around, mouth agape. “This is incredible… I can’t believe this is your life, man.”

Dick shrugged. “It has its ups and downs. But this is definitely an up for me.”

“No kidding…” Wally trailed off and sat back against his hands, the bucket of popcorn sitting between them idly. Dick sat with his legs crossed and breathed slowly. He wished he was getting dressed right now, getting loose and ready to perform. But at the same time, he thought as he glanced at Wally, this wasn’t an all-too-bad alternative.

The show started and Dick wasn’t sure if he paid more attention to the performances or to Wally’s reactions. He loved watching him smile. The only time Dick’s eyes were glued to the center was when his parents were up. He watched them twist and flip through the air, a twinge of jealousy bubbling in his gut. But he couldn’t wipe the smile from his face as they nailed every landing together, completing every stunt with perfection.

Dick didn’t realize as he sat in awe, that Wally was watching him. The way his blue eyes lit up seeing his parents perform was like nothing else he’d ever seen. Dick was beautiful. Wally was needy.

After the standing ovation Dick’s parents got, Wally wrapped an arm over Dick’s shoulders. “They’re pretty great. Explains why you kill it every time you’re up there.”

“The only thing I can kill is my ankle,” Dick said, lowering his eyes, which had lost their shine just in the slightest.

“Are you serious?" Wally asked, pulling away. "You’re incredible up there. Just as much as your parents. You just need more practice on your solo act. You’re so graceful… They swing and twirl and flip but you dance, Dick. You dance like nobody’s watching and you don’t care that there’s not a net under you because you know what you’re doing and you’re so damn good at it. You kill your whole act and leave the audience in awe. There’s a reason you get your own poster, you know.”

Some of the light had returned to Dick’s eyes Wally made his heart flutter for reasons he couldn’t explain. “Thanks, Wally,” he said softly, leaning into his touch with his legs pulled to his chest.  
“I meant it all, Dick. You kill it on your own. Maybe one day you’ll find a partner who dances with the same love as you do, but you don’t even need a partner. They’ll never be quite like you.”

Dick was warmed by Wally's words. He was needy too. He kneeled in front of Wally to wrap his arms around his waist and squeeze him tightly in a hug.

By the end of the show, Dick was sitting in Wally’s lap, warmed from the chill of the night by Wally’s arms wrapped around his waist and his chin gently resting on Dick’s shoulder. Dick wasn’t sure what he felt, but he didn’t want it to go away.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you all for the love you've given this work so far!! All of your kudos warm my heart! I've been posting as often as possible but I'm about to have my wisdom teeth yanked, so I may be a little slow for the next few days. Thanks for your patience <3


	6. The Gang

Dick spent the next many days either spending time with Wally or talking about Wally to his parents. Today, however, he didn’t get to see Wally. He’d just gotten his boot off yesterday and an examination from a doctor cleared him to perform again. Or at least practice. Gently.

Dick was sitting on a bucket and taking a water break from his morning of practice, feeling better about himself than he had in weeks when his mom came to sit beside him.

“You’re doing well, Dick. I know the break was hard on you,” she said, ruffling his hair a little.

“It wasn’t so bad… I got to spend a lot of time with Wally. Plus, I’ve been learning how to box which has been really fun and kept parts of me in shape,” he shrugged.

“I’m glad Wally’s been there for you. How are you two?”

“We’re good. He’s been a little busy with school lately but that’s only ‘cause his dad is so strict,” he said before taking another sip of water.

“Well, that’s good for him. Besides having a strict father. How are you, love? You’ve been so quiet the past few days. Weeks, even.”

Dick shrugged. “I’m just figuring some stuff out… That’s all.”

“Anything I can help with?” 

“I dunno…” Dick stood and hopped onto a nearby balance beam, doing a gentle front handspring and landing carefully back onto his feet. He turned and started walking the other way on it slowly. “Just stuff with Wally.”

“Are you boys fighting?”

“No… No, not fighting.” He did a back handspring, wobbling on his landing a little bit and walking forward to try it again. “I don’t know how to describe it.” He attempted another one, sticking a much more solid landing this time. He sighed and sat on the beam where his mom was watching him.

“Are they good feelings or bad feelings?”

“Kinda both. At the same time. Does that make sense? It’s like… I’m all tingly when I’m around him, but then it just kind of hurts.”

The corner of Mary’s mouth quirked up. “Oh yeah? Where, right in your chest?”

“Yeah… How did you know?”

She stood to go over and join him on the beam. “My baby boy’s in love,” she said, pressing a kiss to the top of his head.

“Ew! Am not! Wally’s my friend!”

“Dick, feelings can be confusing. Just don’t hide from them. Let yourself explore and understand them.”

“I’m not in love with Wally! I told you! He’s- he’s my friend. My closest friend. He means a lot to me.”

“Whatever you feel is perfectly natural, baby. Now get back to practice,” she said after planting a kiss on his head.

Dick tried not to be distracted the whole time, but Wally was all that was on his mind. He practiced the easier moves of his routine, being especially careful whenever his feet were involved, but it was hard to concentrate on form when he was concentrating on a boy.

His practice was rusty, but it didn’t matter to him right now, he had expected that anyways. When the sun started to set, after he’d showered and gotten comfortable, Dick sat outside and stared up at the stars, phone in his hand. He let himself breathe for a few moments before unlocking it and opening his messages with Wally.

‘Hey, Walls. Busy tomorrow?’ he texted, waiting impatiently for his response. 

‘Have school until 3 and track practice until 5. Wanna do something after?’ Wally responded.

‘Not if you smell like sweat’

‘Unfair!’

‘It definitely isn’t’

Wally’s reply took a few minutes of Dick waiting patiently, staring at the screen. ‘Wanna go to the diner? Some of my friends from school are headed over since its Friday! Should be fun :)’

‘Sure! Can’t wait :D’

Dick stared at his screen smiling, that familiar flutter returning to his chest. He realized that he didn’t know any of Wally’s school friends. If they were anything like Wally, he was thrilled to meet them tomorrow.

\----------

Dick waited outside of the diner anxiously. He didn’t know many regular kids his age, and he had started to worry about what would happen if Wally’s friends didn’t like him… He started to gnaw on his lips when he saw the familiar head of red hair hopping out of a car with a few other kids their age.

Dick smiled and waved at Wally, who waved back enthusiastically as he walked over. He greeted Dick with a hug, patting his back before pulling away. 

“Gang, meet Dick Grayson. Aka Boy Wonder. Aka one of the Flying Graysons!” he said, throwing a hand in the air for emphasis. “Dick, meet Kaldur, Conner, Megan, and Artemis.”

Dick tried following all of the names as best as he could, but he’d already forgotten some of them.

“We’ll get more acquainted inside,” he said, wrapping an arm over Dick’s shoulders and leading him and his friends inside. They got a table and ordered, Dick and Wally deciding to share a basket of fries along with their burgers.

“So,” Wally started. “Kaldur’s on the swim team. Has to get up at hell o’clock in the morning to practice. Conner’s on the football team and Megan’s a cheerleader, so all three of us finish practice at the same time, which is convenient.”

Dick smiled politely, but genuinely.

“Artemis… What do you even do?” Wally asked in a teasing tone, to receive a kick from her under the table. “Hey!”

“I do a lot of things! Like study, unlike some people here,” she said, making a face at Wally.

“Dick, you’re part of the circus?” Megan interjected to split the two up. “How interesting. You’re an acrobat, right?”

Dick nodded. “I fly with my parents sometimes, but I’ve been solo performing for a little while. Until I hurt my ankle… But I’m finally back to practicing again. I hope I’ll get my spot back soon, but its my parents for now until I get back into my routine without a net,” he said softly. "They're the best though. Bring a bit more traction that I do."

Wally leaned his elbow on Dick’s shoulder and grinned. “Untrue! Dick’s the best out there! They don’t call him Boy Wonder for nothing.”

Dick blushed and pushed Wally’s arm off of him.

“Do you not go to school?” One of them asked. Dick fished for his name… Kalvin? No… Kaldur!

“I do. Just not here. We move around too much for me to switch all the time, so I’m homeschooled,” he said.

“That explains it,” Artemis said. “Wally never shuts up about you, we started to think you were his imaginary friend.” She flashed Wally a devilish grin.

Dick felt a pang in his chest he didn’t like.

Wally glared at her. “I told you he’s a Grayson! A quick google search and you would’ve seen he’s real! My aunt did a whole article on the circus, his parents were interviewed and everything!”

The food arrived, finally ending that conversation. Dick’s mouth watered at the food. He didn’t eat a whole lot of greasy food at home, so this was heaven. He dug into his food quickly, enjoying every bite.

The conversation was relaxed from there out. Artemis kept teasing Wally or playfully kicking him under the table, and Dick kept getting more pangs. He wasn’t sure what they were, but he hated the tight feeling they gave him. 

They eventually all ate and paid, and waited with Dick while he waited for his dad to come.

“We’ll have to come see one of your shows sometime,” Conner said, an arm wrapped around Megan. It reminded Dick of the way Wally held him sometimes…

“That would be cool. We have posters all over the city. And a website where you can get tickets. There’s a lot of talent and skill, it would be really cool,” Dick said with a smile.

“That would be so fun!” Megan said as Dick’s dad pulled into the parking lot.

“I gotta go. It was nice meeting you all. I’ll see you later, Wally,” Dick said, reaching to give him a hug, which Wally accepted with a small squeeze. Everyone said their goodbyes as he walked away waving. 

Right before he closed the door, he heard Wally explaining something to the others. “It’s not like that. It’s complicated,” he said, rubbing his neck. Dick could barely see his pink-tinted cheeks in the lighting as he rode away.

“How was dinner, son?” his dad asked, pulling out of the parking lot.

“It was good. Mom’s home, right? I gotta talk to her…”

\----------

“I don’t know why it made me so upset!” Dick explained to his mom, falling back onto his bed and rubbing his eyes with the heels of his hands.

“It sounds to me like you’re jealous,” she said, pulling his hands away from his eyes. “Don’t rub so hard. What did you feel?”

“Just… a tightness in my chest. It hurt. I didn’t like seeing her act like that. It’s not even fair, she didn’t do anything wrong! It just made me angry.”

“Darling… Have you thought about it being a form of defensiveness? You hated seeing her act that way with him because…”

“Because I like Wally. A lot.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thought I would be slower posting, but I wrote this before my teeth yanking and wrote a whole chapter today afterward, so I'm on top of the game and really hype for you guys to read the next part! Much love and thanks to you all!


	7. No Tears on Happy Days

Dick was nervous for the next time he was going to see Wally. It was a Saturday and Dick was headed to Wally’s school for his track meet. He wasn’t really sure what visiting a track meet was like, but he was excited to find out. 

He approached the school field and looked around. He didn’t see Wally anywhere, but he did see other spectators seated in the bleachers and went to join them, sitting down near the front to watch. Nothing had started yet, so he pulled his phone out to send a message to Wally.

‘I’m here! Seated in the front. Is it always so cold at these things?’ he typed and sent. His heart was beating abnormally fast. Maybe it was just the thought of Wally or just being here to support him or the anxiety of being around all of these other strangers his age. He was just anxious. And he wanted Wally to win.

An announcer sounded over the speakers that a short distance sprint was to begin soon and all runners had to check in at a tent. Dick had remembered Wally mentioning he did sprints and middle distance, so he looked over to the tent and smiled when he saw the red of Wally’s hair.

The runners all lined up far from Dick, so Wally still hadn’t seen him yet, but Dick was already on the edge of his seat before it even began.

Bam!

The runners were off and Dick sat, watching Wally push all the way to the front moving faster than he’d ever seen somebody move. Even at his speed, Dick could see the sheer concentration on Wally’s face as he pushed past everyone else and drove to stay in front, even when another runner tried to push up beside him.

10.22 seconds. A record for Wally and the school.

Dick shouted and waved his arms as the rest of the stands clapped and cheered for their athletes from other schools who were finishing in Wally’s dust. Dick was on his feet, watching as Wally went to talk to his coach. As soon as Wally was walking away from him, smile on his face, Dick ran over to him and launched into a hug--a rather sweaty hug, but he didn’t care.

“Wally, that was crazy!” he said, pulling away and bouncing on his feet a little. “I’ve never seen anyone go faster than that but the Flash!”

Wally’s smile was big enough to match Dick’s. “Oh, you think I’m faster than Kid Flash?” Wally asked with a grin. “I’m so glad you could come. There’s more where that came from in my 800! Just you wait, Boy Wonder!”

The way Wally called him that made Dick’s heart flutter in that way it just kept doing. But he was quickly pulled from the moment when Wally’s teammates surrounded him cheering and jumping. It was a lot of energy Dick wasn’t used to, but he liked it. Wally deserved it.

“I’ll see you in your next event!” Dick said to Wally, waving and heading away so he could enjoy the victory with his team.

“Wait, Dick!” Wally said, weaving through his friends. He jogged behind the bleachers and came back a couple of seconds later with a track jacket in his arms. He draped it over Dick’s shoulders and smiled. “It’s a little chilly out if you’re not running. See you soon!”

Dick pulled the jacket tightly around himself and watched Wally run back to his friends, some of whom were nudging him and looking back over at Dick. He turned around, cuddling into the jacket. It was warm and smelled like Wally… It would definitely keep him warm for the rest of the meet.

\----------

Wally killed it in the 800 meters just as much as he had in the sprint. 1:50.43. He was close to the world record, but he definitely held the school’s record.

“No wonder you’re team captain. Are you sure you aren’t Kid Flash?” Dick teased as he sat across from Wally at the diner. 

Wally rolled his eyes. “Me? No way. Yellow is so not my color,” he said, leaning forward and eating a fry from the basket between the two. “Besides, he could totally break world records. I’m a couple seconds short. Shredding enough seconds before I’m out of high school is unlikely. You still want my autograph though?”

It was Dick’s turn to roll his eyes. “Haha. Funny. He has the same red hair as you though. And he did save me, so… he’s got points in my book.”

Wally leaned on the palm of his hand, silent for a moment.

“Something on your mind?” Dick asked gently.

“Yeah, actually… Should we order milkshakes?”

Dick threw a fry at Wally and chuckled. He was getting warm, as it was around midday now and the diner was busy enough to keep it toasty, but he didn’t want to take Wally’s jacket off yet. Not until they had to say goodbye.

“I’m serious, Dick. I’m gonna call over the waiter. Do you want one?”

Dick shook his head and watched Wally politely wave the waiter down and ask for a milkshake. Dick fell into a daze watching him, so much so that he didn’t even hear what he said next. “W-What?”

“I asked if you wanted to share. I got chocolate. Everyone always says they don’t want something and then they do so now I’m offering out of the kindness of my heart. Artemis would just say she didn’t want anything and then take my food without asking. Rude.”

Dick felt a pang at hearing Artemis’ name and hated himself for it. “So… Artemis.”

“What about Artemis?”

“You guys are good friends? I mean, you seem like you’re good friends.”

“I guess so. We only met at the beginning of the year. Our family knows each other. Distantly, but that’s it. She’s cool and all.”

Dick nodded. “You guys seem close.”

“I guess She kind of found her way into the friend group, and it works. She and Megan get along well which is good. They hang out when Megan isn’t out with Conner.”

“Wait, they’re dating!?”

“Sure, didn’t you notice? They’re cute. Dream football and cheerleader high school romance story.”

“Does Artemis have a boyfriend?”

Wally chuckled and shook his head before stopping abruptly. “Wait a minute. Are you crushing on Artemis, Dick?” Wally leaned forward with a grin.

Dick shook his head quickly, crossing his arms over his chest. “No! Definitely not, trust me.”

“I don’t believe you."

"I don't!"

"You’ve got all the questions about her. She’s totally not dateable material, but I mean that’s just my-”

“Wally, stop!” Dick said, louder than he had wanted. His face was red and he was even hotter now than he was before. “I don’t- I’m not- I’m not into that!” Dick wasn’t sure why he was so embarrassed or why his heart was racing so fast.

Wally put his hands up in surrender. “Whoa, whoa. I’m sorry, man. I didn’t mean to upset you…” The tension between them was thick, but quickly interrupted by Wally’s milkshake being placed between the two of them. “Thanks,” he said quietly to the waiter.

Dick had his arms tightly around him, head down low enough that his hair covered his face.

Pushing the milkshake aside to not block him, Wally leaned forward over the table, as much as he could to be closer to Dick. “Dick, I’m sorry. Please don’t be upset, it was just a joke…” Dick wiped his eyes and Wally realized he was crying. Shit. He felt a horrible twisting in his gut and a pang in his heart. He didn’t mean to do that. He never wanted to hurt Dick. “Dick…? Talk to me, man.”

“I don’t- I don’t like girls, Wally. At least I never have before,” he said, his voice barely audible over the ambiance of the diner.

“Oh.” That took Wally by surprise. Girls definitely flirted with Dick when they went out together sometimes, Wally had just assumed that the attractions were mutual. “That’s perfectly normal, Dick.” He wanted to ask if not liking girls meant Dick liked boys, but he wasn’t sure whether or not that was appropriate at the moment. 

Wally got up from his side and slid into the booth next to Dick. “Dick, it’s okay.” He lifted Dick’s head and pulled a napkin to dry his tears gently. “Here. Today’s a happy day. No tears on happy days,” Wally said, pulling the chocolate milkshake to Dick. “You need this more than I do.”

Dick stared at the milkshake for a moment before taking a little sip from the straw. “Thanks, Wally… I’m sorry. I didn’t mean-”

“No apologizing,” Wally said, shaking his head. “There’s nothing to apologize for. Just relax.” Wally put his arm around Dick’s shoulders, hoping the contact would help ground him a little bit. “You know, I like boys. Girls too. I’m not picky.”

Dick looked over to Wally. “Really?”

“Yeah, like I said. Perfectly normal. Maybe I’m a bad example, though, ‘cause I’m hardly normal, but that’s not what makes me abnormal.”

“The only thing that makes you abnormal is how much food you eat,” Dick said, finally smiling again. It was slight, but it eased the pain in Wally’s chest.

"Okay, okay, no need to come for me like that."

Things felt normal again until Dick’s dad pulled up outside about half an hour later. “My dad’s here. I gotta go,” he said after checking his phone. “Um, here,” he said, going to take Wally’s jacket off.

“Keep it for now. It’s supposed to be cold tonight,” Wally said, standing up from the seat to let Dick out of the booth, not noticing the light that sparked in Dick’s eyes as he pulled the jacket back on.

“I’ll see you soon, probably sometime next week,” Dick said, reaching to give him a tight hug. “Thanks, Wally.”

Dick was out the door in an instant and Wally watched him go, breathing out softly. Things were less complicated than they were before, but Wally still didn’t know… Did Dick like boys?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Dick is soft


	8. Tonight Was Perfect

It had been over a week since Dick had seen Wally. He’d been practicing rigorously, enough to be in the Friday night show this week. He’d been texting Wally all of the updates, and was excited to hear how enthusiastic Wally was about all of it too. Dick was… over the moon. The thought of flying again for an audience, even if it wasn’t his solo act, was everything he’d wanted for the past weeks upon weeks.

“I’m not nervous,” he assured his parents as he stretched on the ground. 

“It’s okay if you are. We know it’s been a while, but you’ve practiced enough and you know what you’re doing,” his dad said, also warming up.

“I’m not! I’m just excited. Been a while since all the Graysons have flown together anyways,” he smirked proudly. His mom ruffled his hair and he huffed, trying to fix it. “Whatever happens tonight happens. But I’m not hurting my ankle again.”

“You got that right, you’re not.”

The tent was already filling with eager visitors and Dick… Dick was starting to get a little nervous now. But it was normal, he always got a little nervous. It was enough to drive him to perfection, but also enough to make sitting until the end of the show to perform that much harder. He was always bouncing on his feet impatiently. But at the same time, their time waiting flew by. It was like he blinked and he was up in the air, waiting for his mom to start the routine.

Euphoria. That’s what Dick felt as he swung through the air. He could almost taste the anxiety and anticipation in the crowd. There was tension and excitement and it all centered around his family. He felt like a bird, soaring with perfect grace and timing, working seamlessly with his parents. By the time the routine was over, he felt like they’d only just begun. He was sweaty and hot and utterly enchanted by the atmosphere.

The cheering was almost deafening as he and his family exited, giving one group hug of success.

“We’re so proud of you, Dick,” his father said.

“You’re the most natural aerialist I’ve ever seen,” his mom said, pulling away from the hug with a bright smile.

\----------

Dick was proud. He sat on a platform still in costume but with Wally’s jacket wrapped around his shoulders, legs swinging as he watched the crowd slowly dissipate. He was still high off of his own adrenaline.

“Thought I might find you here.”

Dick whipped around to see Wally standing there, hands in his pockets and a big smile on his face.

“Wally! Oh my god, you came!” he said, standing to go launch into a hug. “I’m so glad you could come.”

“I wouldn’t have missed my best friend performing like that again for the whole world!” Wally said, lifting Dick off of his feet to spin him in a circle.

Dick laughed as he was spun and didn’t let go of Wally for several seconds, even after being put back down. “What’d you think?”

“I think you had the entire tent in… in awe, Dick. Never seen anything like it.” Wally sat down at the edge of the platform, where Dick had been before and watched the few remaining crowd members leaving. “You were amazing. You never fail to amaze me.”

Dick joined Wally at the edge of the platform and scooted near enough for their knees to be touching. “Thanks, Wally. I’m really glad you came. It’s been forever since I was up there. It was… everything,” Dick breathed.

Wally wrapped an arm around Dick’s shoulder, a movement that was familiar between the two, and looked up to the sky. “Hey, you can actually see the stars out here. You get too deep in the city and the sky is just empty.”

Dick looked up to the sky and nodded. “I think it’s beautiful.”

*I think you’re beautiful* Wally bit his tongue. He couldn’t say that; he couldn’t afford the ruin everything they’d worked so hard to build together. But he did think Dick was beautiful, especially now. There was something special about this moment. Dick’s eyes were brighter than ever, his hair was a little aloof, and he just looked so damn happy. It made Wally’s heart rate speed up uncomfortably fast, which said a lot for the speedster.

Dick looked over to Wally and rested his head on his shoulder, eager for the contact. “You know-” Dick was cut off by a loud ding from Wally’s phone. 

Not now! Shit. A Flash emergency. “I-I gotta run, Dick. Sorry for suddenly leaving. I… I wish I could stay longer. Just stay safe and good job. You were amazing tonight.” Wally flashed a smile before he was gone.

Dick sighed. Tonight had been so perfect. He had wanted to tell him tonight.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This one's a little short, but I have a lot coming in the next chapter! Thanks again for all of the continued love and support!


	9. Bad Habit

“No, your third sentence is kind of… awkward.”

Wally sighed and put down his second empty cup of coffee. “Well, I don’t know how else to write it! Do you want more coffee? I’m getting more coffee.”

Dick looked down at his first cup, which was still half full. “I’m good.” He watched Wally walk over to the counter and back at his paper. Wally was redoing an English paper, trying to get some points back in hopes of avoiding the inevitable grounding that would come his way if he couldn’t get his grade up. Dick sighed and leaned forward to reword the sentence into a more arguable thesis. 

Wally returned a couple of minutes later with a third coffee. “Okay, what were we doing?”

“Your thesis. Still. Are you sure you need more coffee?” 

“Yes! I was up all night last night trying to work on my business project for my financing class. God, I can’t wait until this semester is over.” Or maybe Wally had been out on a mission. Minor details.

“Well, let’s finish this essay, and then you can go home and take a nap.” Dick wouldn’t have minded a nap too. He’d been restless these past few nights thinking about Wally. It was embarrassing to admit to himself, but he had fallen hard. 

“Is it warm in here, or is it just me?” Dick asked, looking around the coffee shop--it was one of Wally’s favorite places to come to after school since it was so close to the campus--and pulling Wally’s track jacket off. He still had it, because every time he tried to give it back, Wally insisted Dick would still need it. Dick didn’t mind.

“No, I’m definitely warm. I didn’t think they would have the heaters on in here, but they must…” Wally trailed off, looking around. “Something’s fishy. Be right back,” Wally said. Dick didn’t see what the big deal was, but Wally looked concerned as he walked over to the main counter.

Dick wasn’t alone for long before chaos exploded all around him in an instant. A plank from the ceiling fell in at the table right next to Dick, flames consuming it and spreading quickly across the floor in Dick’s direction. He didn’t have anywhere to go, so he got up and stood on the table before lunging himself across the room, landing on his shoulder and tucking in his body to roll to safety, uninjured.

He looked around rapidly to make sure the shop was cleared. There was one couple trapped in their booth and Dick was by them in an instant, helping them get over the fire and to safety. He rushed outside, breathing the clean air in heavily and coughing a little. He looked around to find Wally only to see Wally was nowhere to be found. 

Taking in a huge gulp of air, Dick rushed back into the burning building, looking around through the smoke to find Wally. “Wally!” he cried out, using his hands to shield his face from the flames. Within seconds, he was back outside, Kid Flash standing right in front of him, cupping his face in his hands. 

“Why were you still in there!? I watched you get out safely!” Kid Flash yelled over the commotion, inspecting Dick’s face for any injuries. 

“My- My friend Wally is still inside!” Dick cried out, looking through the glass window for any sign of Wally.

“Wally’s fine! I just… dropped him off down the street away from the commotion. He’s uninjured. Now get out of here! This fire wasn’t caused by some kitchen error. You’re not safe here.”

Kid Flash was gone in an instant, leaving Dick and his racing heart alone. He and Wally really needed to stop making a habit of this. No matter how much acrobatic and boxing training he had, he was pretty useless against fire. Dick started to run down the street, searching for Wally when he bumped into an officer arriving on the scene right after the fire department.

“Please! You need to help me find my friend Wally!”

“Hey, hey, slow down there, kid. What- Oh. You need some medical attention, son,” the officer said, calling something in on his radio.

Dick had no idea what he was talking about. He looked down at himself and realized what a poor shape his hands were in. Well, his left hand specifically. When he’d held them up to shield the fire, they’d gotten scorched. He wasn’t sure if they’d scar or not, but he hadn’t even noticed them through the adrenaline until they were pointed out. He barely even felt the full pain; his brain was too consumed by worry for Wally.

\----------

The fire was out. 

/Where was Wally?/

Dick was sitting on the curb, wrapped in a shock blanket while his hands were being treated. 

/Where was Wally?/

The wreckage was being dug through as the news reporters started arriving to report on the Heat Wave attack. 

/Where was Wally?/

His hands were wrapped gently. It reminded him of the first time Wally took him boxing.

/Where was-/

“Dick!”

Dick’s head snapped up at the familiar voice. “Wally!” he gasped, jumping to his feet and nearly falling over at the force of the hug Wally gave him. “What happened to you?! I saw Kid Flash and-”

“Shhh.” Wally pulled away from Dick and cupped his face in his hands the same way Kid Flash had. “I was stuck for a moment. Kid Flash saved me. I’m okay now. What happened to your hands?” Wally picked up Dick’s hands and ran his fingers over the bandages gently.

“I got burned. They said there probably won’t be much scarring and it should heal in a couple of weeks,” he said. That was enough for him to put any aerial arts on hold once more, but that wasn’t what was on his mind. Wally had some scorch marks on his face, Dick reached up to wipe them gently. “You scared me. Again, Wally,” he said firmly, paying more attention to cleaning Wally’s face to avoid eye contact. 

“I’m sorry, Dick. We just have really, really bad luck whenever we go out together.”

“We were separated again.”

“I know. I didn’t mean to. I wanted to protect you then I got stuck and-”

“I could’ve lost you, Wally. What if Kid Flash wasn’t here!? What if- What-” Dick shook his head, tears leaking out of his eyes. “You could’ve died. Same as last time!”

Wally reached out to dry Dick’s tears. The same horrible, twisting bubble of guilt filled Wally’s gut. "Dick, I-"

“You’re so stupid, Wally! You’re always disappearing and- and” Dick could barely control his breathing over his emotions. His head was cloudy with fear and pain and worry, but one action was clear in his mind. He sniffled, pushing back tears and grabbed Wally by his shirt, pulling him down to his level to kiss him in one fluid motion.

Short. Sweet. Magical. Everything he had wanted it to be. The tension in Wally’s gut ceased at the same time a weight lifted from Dick’s shoulders.

Dick didn’t even give Wally time to process before he was in Wally’s arms, head tucked just under his chin. “And I can’t lose you,” he finished, softly, but just loud enough for Wally to hear.

Wally never wanted to let go of Dick. Maybe he would make an exception if they were going to kiss again, but that was it. Yet, he pulled away knowing he needed to look Dick in the eyes. “You’re the one who’s always getting yourself injured. If I need to stop being stupid, you do too,” he said sincerely, but not without a hint of playfulness. He pressed a kiss to the top of Dick’s head and pulled him in close once more. “Do you wanna go back to my place and take that nap with me?”


	10. On the DL

Dick was excited to see Wally after track practice today. They were meeting up with his friends to get something to eat together. It was the first time Dick would see him after their first kiss and warm cuddles the other day. And then tomorrow night Dick was going on his first date. But for now, just a casual outing.

Dick still had Wally’s track jacket, which hadn’t been in the best condition after the fire, but with a quick wash and a sewing kit, he was able to recover it completely. So he sat in the chilling evening air in the bleachers with Wally’s jacket on waiting for practice to finish.

He caught the tail end of just about all of it. Conner went to the locker rooms to get changed after football practice, and Megan followed suit with the cheer team. Wally was in a circle with his team and as soon as that was finished, made his way over to Dick, who had stood to lean against the metal bars separating the track and bleachers.

“Hi,” Dick said, smiling as Wally jogged over. 

“Hey. How’s the Boy Wonder?” Wally asked. 

“Doing well. Saw the end of your practice. You barely even look tired. Your coach really pushes you guys.”

“No kidding, but I’ve got tons of energy left. I could still run a mile! But that’s more cross country. I’m working on shorter distance speeds in track. Someone’s gotta break all the records.”

Dick chuckled. “Well, it seems like you’re doing that pretty well already. I saw Conner and Megan head into the locker rooms to clean up. You following, or are you just gonna stink all evening?”

Wally pouted. “Unfair! Yet fair. I’ll see you in a few, okay? I’m gonna run and take a shower.”

Dick nodded, watching Wally run to catch up to his team with awe. He had so much energy. Dick lifted himself to sit on the bar he’d been leaning against when Conner approached him with Megan at his side.

“Hello, Dick!” Megan greeted, rushing over. “Have you seen Wally yet?”

“Yeah, he just ran to the locker room. He said he’d be a few minutes still.”

“Oh, no worries. We’ve got tons of time, right Conner?” she said, looking over to him.

“Yeah, sure.”

Dick didn’t hear Conner talk a whole lot. He seemed the quietest in the group, but not the most reserved, that was definitely Kaldur.

They didn’t have to wait very long before Wally rushed out of the locker room with wet hair and a bag bouncing at his hip along with his regular school bag. “Who’s ready to eat!? Kaldur and Artemis are meeting us there, I just texted them. Megan, lead the way,” Wally waved a hand to the parking lot, where Megan brought them to her car. They all piled in, Dick next to Wally in the back, and Conner next to Megan in the front.

Megan pulled into an unfamiliar place to Dick, but he wasn’t a picky eater, so he was willing to try just about anything. Kaldur and Artemis were talking outside before they saw the car pull up and waved.

They all walked up together, but Wally stopped Dick outside as the others went in. “We’ll meet you in a sec,” he said to the others before turning to Dick. “Uh, just wanted to mention something before we go in,” Wally said quietly.

“Okay… Is everything okay?”

“Yeah! Completely. It’s just… the others don’t know. About us yet. About anything with us. I just thought maybe we could kind of keep it on the dl for now?”

Dick thought about it for a moment. “But why?”

“Just… so it can be ours for a while. Only ours. I don’t want to rush into anything. I want to do this right. Wait till we have everything figured out.”

“What do you mean figured out?”

“Like what we’re both comfortable with.”

“That sounds like a good idea, I think… Can I still wear your jacket?”

Wally laughed and nodded. “Yes, you can still wear the jacket.” He pulled Dick into a quick hug and pressed a kiss to the top of his head before leading Dick inside to find their friends.

Dick wasn’t really sure how anything with dating went. He’d never dated before and definitely wasn’t around enough kids his age to see what it was really like in real life. He’d seen plenty of portrayals on TV and in movies but knew that those weren’t always the most realistic, especially when it was a teenage relationship portrayed by two grown adults. Not to mention, this wasn’t a straight relationship, which meant new territory in more ways than just one. But Dick was willing to learn with Wally.

They found their friends and walked over to join them, each grabbing a menu and looking over it. Dick wasn’t familiar with most of the food, but he recognized it as Thai food. “What do you recommend?” he asked Wally.

“Umm all of it? Khao pad, yum nua, just about anything here.”

Dick shrugged, deciding to try something new, even though that was everything on the menu for him.

Their orders were taken, and Megan leaned forward, resting her elbows on the table. “So, Kaldur, how’s the swim team doing? You guys had a meet on Saturday, right?’

“We did. We’re still second ranking in the area, but I’m working hard with the team to get us to the next level,” Kaldur explained.

“That’s pretty good,” Artemis said with a nod. “There was a track meet on Saturday too, right?” she asked, looking to Wally.

“Yeah. Couldn’t break my records from two weeks ago, but I still kept my first place title,” he said. “Working with the team as much as I can, but some people just aren’t pushing as hard as others… We’ll see what happens by the end of the season. Coach thinks we could break some more records for the school, especially in discus and long jump.”

“Impressive! We could use some of that energy from wins like that at the school,” Megan said. “Dick, how have things been in your practice?”

“I… was kind of benched again,” he admitted, pulling his legs up to sit cross-legged in his seat. “I burned my hands in an attack and they’re still healing. It’s hard to do even basic stuff with hands in pain,” he said, pulling them up and looking at them, still bandaged in white to help them heal. “I feel like every time I get back out there, something tries to keep me away from it,” he huffed.

“I’m sure you’ll heal soon. You’ve only been in the city for a few weeks and you’ve already had run-ins with two villains. Can’t get much unluckier than that. Hopefully, your bad luck’s all expended and you can actually enjoy yourself,” she said.

Dick nodded. “Guess I can only hope,” he said right before their food arrived.

“Thank god. I’m starving,” Wally said, digging into his plate quickly.

Dick tried his food and tried not to make a face. Trying something new was not in his favor. He heard a chuckle from Wally.

“You don’t like it?”

Dick shook his head. “I don’t want to be rude, I can-”

“Switch with me,” Wally said, sliding his dish to Dick and pulling Dick’s to himself without hesitation. “I’ll eat just about anything.”

Dick tried food from Wally’s dish and was surprised to like it a lot. He started to eat in silence, not realizing how hungry he was until now.

The group continued talking about sports and English papers, while Dick happily listened. He couldn’t relate to any of it, considering his homeschooled life, but part of him was happy he wasn’t a part of all of the drama. Regular high school seemed like a lot of work, both in classes and socially.

The sun began to set and everyone figured it was about time to start heading home. “Need a ride?” Wally asked Dick. “My Uncle Barry’s coming to get me. I’m spending the weekend at his. He can bring you home.”

Dick nodded gratefully. He hadn’t texted either of his parents yet and knew it would take them a while to get here if he asked now. “That would be great, honestly.”

“Later, guys,” he said, waving goodbye to everyone as they all piled into Megan’s car to get rides home. Wally sat on the curb with Dick, wrapping an arm around his shoulder comfortably. He leaned in and pecked Dick’s cheek now that it was just the two of them. 

Dick leaned into Wally’s touch and blushed at the light kiss. “Thanks, Wally. I’m glad I get to come to these things. Sometimes I forget how not normal I am until I do though,” he chuckled.

“Nothing wrong with being not normal. You’re living your best life while performing for thousands and avoiding high school drama. Pretty sure that’s everyone’s dream life.”

“Guess I’m lucky I met you. I’ve always been pretty… isolated. Not that it was bad, or by choice, I just only knew my circus family. They were the only people I was exposed to.”

Wally shrugged. “I think you turned out alright anyway.”

Wally’s uncle pulled up then and Wally lifted Dick from the curb by his hand to lead him into the car. They sat next to each other, hand in hand. Wally knew he’d need to explain to his uncle later, but he was happy to have his uncle be the first person in Wally’s life to know about him and Dick.

When they arrived, Dick was sad to say goodbye but exciting to think that the next time they said hello, they’d be on their first date. “See you tomorrow, Wally,” Dick said. He wasn’t sure if it was okay for him to kiss Wally goodbye, them being on the dl and all… But his question was answered when Wally leaned forwards to peck him before he smiled and left. The door closed behind him and Wally heard Barry clear his throat up front.

“So. Anything you want to tell me?” Barry asked.


	11. Balance and Communication

“You look so handsome, Dick,” Mary said, combing his hair with her fingers.

“Moooom,” Dick rolled his eyes. “I just did my hair!”

“I’m just fixing it a little! When is he coming again?” she asked, looking over to the small clock on the counter. 

“In like twenty minutes. I still have plenty of time.”

“Well, you look nice.” She reached to fix the collar of his blue button-up shirt, one of the nicest ones he had, and smiled warmly. “Are you nervous?”

“I’m not nervous! I’m just… Maybe a little nervous. He said he doesn’t want things to go too fast, and I think that’s a great idea. I’m just not really sure what that means for what we can and can’t do.”

“Do what feels natural. If he does something you’re not comfortable with, tell him. And make sure he feels comfortable enough to do the same for you. It’s all about balance and communication.”

Dick nodded. “Balance and communication.”

\----------

Wally was speeding around his aunt and uncle’s house looking for the shirt he was sure he packed. “Uncle Barry!” he called from upstairs before speeding to the kitchen where he sat with Iris. “I can’t find my red shirt anywhere. The dark red one, not the bright red, I don’t want to look like a stop sign.”

“It’s on the ironing board. I just pressed all of the wrinkles out so it didn’t look like it had been sitting in a bag for so long,” Iris said. “You can run up and grab it, or give me a minute and I can bring it to your room.”

“Already on it!” Wally said as he sped up to the laundry room. Thank god. He was changed within seconds and got to work on styling his hair. When he was done, he sped downstairs and held his arms up in front of Barry and Iris. “Am I too much red right now? I thought it would look good and now I’m doubting myself.”

“You look great, Wally. Are you just about ready to head out?” Barry asked.

“I think so…”

“Are you alright?” Iris asked, leaning against the counter.

“Yeah. I’m just a little nervous. I don’t want to mess anything up. He’s just perfect, you know?”

“You’re getting nervous over nothing,” Iris said, putting a hand on his shoulder. “Be yourself. That’s the person he fell for. There’s nothing about you that isn’t just as perfect to him.”

Wally nodded. “Be myself. Got it.”

“I couldn’t have said it better myself. You ready to go get him?” Barry asked.

\-----------

Dick hugged his parents before running out the door to wave to Wally and his uncle as they pulled in. He climbed into the back seat next to Wally and Wally greeted him with a bright but shy smile. Dick understood, he was a little shy too. Everything was exactly the same only… not really. Balance and communication, he reminded himself.

“Can I hold your hand?” Dick asked, and Wally answered by reaching out and interlocking their fingers together. 

“You don’t need to ask,” Wally said, his smile softening up a bit more and becoming more comfortable. Dick looked hot. Wally couldn’t keep his eyes off of him. He was about to go on a date with Dick Grayson, the most perfect person he’d ever met. Wow.

They pulled up to the theater not long after and Wally lead Dick in after thanking his uncle for the ride. He bought them tickets and Dick bought them a bucket of popcorn to share. The largest one, because he knew Wally all too well. They waited in the lobby for the theater to open so Dick put the popcorn next to him, reaching for Wally’s hand again. 

“Can I ask a question that may be stupid? I don’t really know how all of this stuff works…” Dick asked. Communication. He needed to just ask.

“Go for it.”

“I know we’re supposed to be on the dl… But I guess I don’t really know what that means for us.”

“It means whatever we want it to mean. For me it’s more of letting things develop naturally, not pushing anything, and not pushing it in anyone’s face. It’s also best if things are still… confusing when it comes to sexuality. Most people know I’m bi, but I’m not sure about you. I want you to be comfortable too, especially since you’ve got so many eyes on you. Just because we can be private doesn’t mean we’re hiding anything.”

“Okay. I like that. What about our friends? The other night you had said to keep it on the dl and not tell them, but now it sounds different.”

“Close friends should be the first to know, in my opinion. But I guess I’m a little old fashioned… I like to tell people after the first date. A first date is for two people, nobody else needs to be involved. And after that is kind of when it becomes official, you know?”

Dick smiled. “Can I kiss you?”

“Do you want to?”

Dick leaned up and pressed a gentle kiss to Wally’s lips. He saw the doors open to the theater behind Wally and jumped up, scooping the popcorn up with his free arm and leading Wally to the doors.

Wally laughed all the way to their seats, hanging on to Dick’s hand as he was led into the theater. They sat in their seats and Dick propped the popcorn bowl between them. Wally started eating some and Dick rested his head on his hand as the previews started. 

“It’s been a long time since I’ve been to the movies,” Dick whispered. “Last time, I was probably 10. I went with my parents for my birthday.”

“Well, then we should make a habit of it. Only when there’s something good out, though. There’s always like a solid three months of the year where just nothing good is out. Then you just gotta binge Netflix for days.”

“I don’t have Netflix either.”

“What!? What do you watch then?”

“Whatever we have downloaded. We move so much sometimes we don’t even bother with wifi unless we’re somewhere for a longer time. We had it here for now, but- we had to get rid of it,” he said softly. He wasn’t embarrassed of his life, he knew how hard his parents worked to make ends meet for them, but he was embarrassed that it was his fault. They had to make some sacrifices to pay for his medical bills after his injury.

“Well, that’s one more thing I’ve got to show you the ropes to,” Wally said, making Dick instantly feel comfortable again. Wally didn’t even need to try to make Dick feel warm inside.

The movie started and they sat together, laughing and eating popcorn, one hand intertwined the entire time. Dick had doubts before about how much popcorn they had, but he wondered why he ever doubted when the bucket was empty by the end of the movie.

They walked out together, Wally swinging their hands and commenting on the details he did and didn’t like about the movie.

“I just thought it was stupid to foreshadow a big reveal like that and then expect everyone to be surprised when it actually happens,” Wally said, rambling about the same thing he had been for the past five minutes. Dick thought it was cute.

“I guess the writers just didn’t know what they were doing,” Dick shrugged.

“Clearly! I liked that lead actress though. She was really convincing.”

Dick nodded. He just liked listening to Wally’s voice. 

“We have some options now,” Wally said, as he and Dick made their way outside. “We can get some food, go for a walk, do… whatever. I told Uncle Barry to come get us in about an hour, so we’ve got some time to kill.”

“I’m pretty full of popcorn. I wouldn’t mind going for a walk.”

Wally smiled and squeezed Dick’s hand. “Sounds good to me, babe.”

Babe. That word rang around Dick’s head and made his heart flutter for all the right reasons.

They strolled around the city so comfortably, despite the chill picking up as the sun set. Wally was convinced that their hands were made to fit perfectly in each other's. Their conversations flowed so effortlessly, and the fading light made Dick’s eyes sparkle. Wally never wanted the night to end.

But alas, just over an hour later, they were in Barry’s car, Dick resting his head on Wally’s shoulder in the back, trying not to drift to sleep. 

“Tonight was perfect,” Dick said softly. Rain had started to fall, pittering on the windows as they rode.

“I’m glad you liked it,” Wally said, wrapping an arm around Dick’s waist and pulling him in. “I’m really glad we got to go out.”

“Me too…” Dick did start to drift off, but it wasn’t long before they pulled in and Wally had to gently shake him awake.

They got out together and Wally walked Dick up to his door. 

“Thanks again, Wally,” Dick said, the warmth in his chest immeasurable.

“Anytime, Boy Wonder.” Wally leaned forward and kissed Dick warmly, deeper than ever before, but not overwhelmingly so. “I’ll see you later,” Wally whispered as he pulled away before running back to his uncle’s car through the rain. 

Dick practically melted in place right then and there. He needed to remember to move himself to get inside, sighing happily and kicking his shoes off at the entrance. Dick was in love.


	12. Making the Memories

“When are you going to ask him?” Megan asked, leaning forward at the table.

“I don’t know! It’s kind of a big thing and we’ve only been actually dating for like three weeks and-” Wally rambled, running a hand through his hair.

“You’re just scared he’ll say no,” Artemis said, leaning back against the booth.

“I- okay maybe just a little bit. But who wouldn’t be! It’s only been a little while and this is kind of a big deal! Especially for someone who’s never been to public school!”

“Coward.”

“I’m not a coward!”

“It makes sense that Wally would be nervous. Most people are nervous anyways under completely normal circumstances,” Kaldur said.

“Thank you! Look, I want to ask him. I’m just-”

“You’re a coward,” Artemis cut in.

Wally glared at her. “Okay, here’s another idea. What if I ask him and it’s not everything he thought it would be and he has a horrible time and it’s all my fault.”

“Or, what if you ask him and he actually enjoys it,” Conner suggested with a shrug.

Wally sank back in his chair and shook his head. “I know you guys are trying to help, but you’re really just hurting my head.”

“Let’s break it down more. Are you gonna go the simple ‘Will you go to prom with me?’ route, or have a big promposal?” Megan asked, running through a few ideas in her head.

“I don’t know! Whatever happens, I just... I want it to be special, you know? Something he’ll remember as not totally lame or boring.”

“He won’t think of it that way, Wally. I think you need to just get out of your own head,” Artemis said.

“Why does Wally need to get out of his own head this time?” Dick asked, sliding into the booth next to Wally and greeting him with a kiss.

“School stuff,” Wally said, wrapping an arm over his shoulders.

“So the usual? Sorry I’m late. I ended up training way later than expected, then I had to help Nala get back in her cage after she escaped trying to chase a mouse. She’s a good lion, the best you’ve ever met, but she likes to play more than anything,” he explained, pulling his bag off of his shoulders.

“Dude, what is your life?” Artemis asked, amused.

Dick shrugged. “A lot to keep up with, at the moment. But I’m almost done with my schoolwork for this year,” he beamed.

“Us too! Still have like two months left, but they’re full of lots of fun events and, you know, formal events-” Artemis was cut off when Wally kicked her under the table.

“Sounds like a good distraction from the stress.”

“It sure is,” Megan said. “Then we get all summer to do whatever we want.”

Summer. That word made Dick’s heart sink. There was a chance Wally knew, sure, but he couldn’t bear the thought of addressing it, even though he so badly needed to. The circus’ last days in the city were in May, then they moved on to Metropolis, then to Midway, then to Gotham... It would be months before Dick would be back in Central City. Maybe even longer.

“Dick?” Wally asked, giving him a nudge.

“Hm? Sorry, did I miss something?”

“Yeah, Kaldur just asked what your plans are for the summer.”

“Oh. You know. Same as the rest of the year. Practice and perform,” he said with a halfhearted shrug and distant look in his eyes. “I gotta go use the bathroom,” he said, standing and walking away from the table.

Wally looked at the others confusedly. Something was wrong. “Dick, what’s going on?” he asked after getting up to follow him and putting a hand on Dick’s shoulder to stop him before he went into a stall.

“I can’t talk about it now,” Dick said, not turning to face Wally.

“Okay. When can you talk about it?”

“I- I don’t know! Never!” Dick threw his arms in the air briefly before lowering his head and rubbing his eyes roughly.

Wally wasn't sure he'd ever seen Dick so upset. “Do you want to take this outside, babe?”

Dick kept his head down as he followed Wally out to the entrance. Wally pulled them out of the way and lifted Dick’s chin gently so he could see his face again. 

“Dick, you’re worrying me,” Wally said softly, trying to make eye contact with Dick, who refused.

“I still don’t want to talk about it.”

“I think you need to, Dick.”

Dick took in a shaky breath. “You wanna know so badly? I’m leaving this summer. For Metropolis. We’ll be there for a while and then keep moving on.”

Wally bit his lip and sighed. “I know, Dick.”

“I’m gonna have to leave everything behind! Including you,” he said, finally meeting Wally’s eyes with watery ones.

“I know. I just… I don’t want to think about that now, Dick. We’ll work something out. This isn’t impossible, okay? We’ll be apart for a while, but then the next time we’re together it’ll be like nothing ever before!” He pulled Dick into a hug and rubbed his back gently. “I hate it as much as you do. But I’m not giving up because of it. You have a lot of responsibilities that are important. But we still have a little while left. I just want to enjoy every moment.”

“I just can’t see myself enjoying every moment when I know it’s all going to end. This spring has been the best time of my life. I wish I could live in it forever.”

“Are you kidding!? You and me both. I’m dating the most perfect boy in the whole world and I’m gonna have to say goodbye soon. But it’s not goodbye forever. I’m always your biggest fan, you know.”

Dick smiled into Wally’s chest. “Yeah, yeah. I know, Wally. And I’m yours.”

Wally pulled away and lifted Dick’s chin to kiss him gently. “We’re each others. And thank god for it. I think we just need to enjoy the time we have.”

Dick nodded. “We’re making the memories we’re going to have to hold onto.”

Wally threaded their fingers together, gave Dick another warm kiss, and brushed the hair gently out of his eyes. “Are you ready to go back in?” 

Dick sucked in a short breath and nodded.

\----------

“Dude are you ready?” Artemis asked Wally right after school had ended.

“You know, I was thinking. Maybe I should just do it tomorrow!” Wally said, throwing his hands into the air as he went to the locker room to change for track.

“He’s not gonna be here tomorrow! Get out of your head!”

“Well then I can just do it next time!”

“West, don’t be an idiot. He’s gonna say yes. Just do it already,” she said, giving Wally a light shove into the locker room and shaking her head.

Dick sat outside on the bleachers, staring at his phone. He’d offered to come to track practice today because with a show tonight and rough practice tomorrow, he knew it would be a few days until he could see Wally again.

He looked up when the track team came out just as the cheer team did. 

“Hey, Dick.” 

He looked over to see Artemis approaching the bleachers and smiled. She was holding a camera in her right hand and sat next to Dick. “Hey. I thought you normally went home after school.”

Artemis shrugged. “Depends on the occasion.”

“Grayson!” multiple voices called from the track team.

He looked over curiously and waved. He had met a few of them here and there, but he really didn’t know any of them very well. But at this point, they all knew him as Grayson, Wally’s boy, and/or Boy Wonder.

The whole group jogged over to the track, laughing and giving each other playful shoves. They stopped near Dick on the track and five of them lined up on the track turned around, while the rest stayed in a little cluster off to the side, including Wally. Music he didn’t recognize started to play, and he watched in confusion. This was definitely not how track practice usually started.

One by one, each boy turned around at a musical cue, holding a small poster Dick hadn’t noticed before now to slowly spell out “PROM?” Dick chuckled, still a little confused, before Wally did a back handspring across the track, landing right in the center and held a hand out to Dick.

“Dick Grayson, will you go to prom with me?” Wally asked, his big goofy grin splayed on his face.

Dick laughed and nodded, the puzzle pieces finally clicking together. He knew he was blushing madly. “Yes, Wally. I’ll go to prom with you,” he said, still laughing out of glee.

The whole track team cheered and Wally ran to Dick to pick him up and spin him around. He pressed a kiss to his cheek before whispering “You have no idea how scary that was.”

Dick chuckled and returned a kiss to Wally’s cheek. “It was incredible. We need to work on your form, though.”

Wally pulled away, looking offended. “Hey, I had to learn that off of nothing but YouTube videos!”

Dick laughed and pulled him in for a deeper kiss, only realizing everyone was watching when he heard a wolf whistle. He pulled away and gave Wally a playful shove. “Go run.”

“I need a good luck kiss!” Wally protested, leaning in for another.

Dick rolled his eyes and met their lips together briefly. “There. Now go run!”

Wally rejoined the team to pats on the back and whoops, and Dick sat back on the bleachers, heart beating a little faster than normal. 

“I’ll send these to you when they’re edited,” Artemis said before walking away, camera still in hand

Dick’s heart swelled as he watched Wally start to stretch. Even from here he could see the smile on his face.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry I've taken a hot minute. I've been ridiculously busy with all of my classes now that I'm back. Hopefully, I'll get back on a regular schedule soon


	13. Kid Flash

The sun shone brightly in the warm afternoon and Dick and Wally walked hand-in-hand through the park. Wally carried a sandwich in his hand which he ate throughout their walking and talking.

“All I’m saying is, you have nothing to be worried about. Almost everyone at prom will be kids from the school who don’t care about you unless a, you’re wearing a pretty dress, or b, you’re best buds. Wait, are you wearing a pretty dress?” Wally said before taking a bite of his food.

Dick bumped into Wally and rolled his eyes. “No. You told me to wear a suit so I’m wearing a suit.”

“Does that mean I could’ve gotten you to wear a dress if I had told you to wear one?”

Dick gave Wally a glare. “No. Not that I have anything against dresses, but leotards and leggings already give me more breeze that I would ask for.”

Wally laughed. “Okay, okay. One more thing. We have to decide whether we want to go out to dinner before just the two of us or go out with our friends. If we go out together, we’ll meet up with them there, but just have the beginning to ourselves.”

“I don’t know... Both sound fun.”

“Well, I’ve only ever had one date at a dance. Homecoming freshman year. Don’t ask. We went out with her friends before and it was miserable. So I really would only know how going with friends goes. But I also kinda wouldn’t mind it being something special just the two of us.”

“Before I leave?” Dick asked softly.

Wally nodded sheepishly. “Yeah…”

“So let’s do it. Just the two of us. We’ll see everyone there anyway, so it’s fine.”

Wally lifted their hands up to his mouth to press a kiss to the back of Dick’s. “Sounds perfect to me.”

They walked together, chatting amiably about the circus and ducks as they crossed by the pond marking the center of the park. Dick pulled him over and pulled a piece of bread from Wally’s sandwich.

“Hey, that was mine!” Wally whined, following Dick regardless.

“Now it’s the duck’s,” Dick said, tossing it to a nearby duck waddling around, who scarfed it down.

“That was rude. Don’t take my food,” Wally pouted.

“You’re almost done anyways!” Dick gave Wally’s hand a squeeze and turned back around, looking around at the trees. “Hey…” he said as he saw a lady digging through her purse while a man stood by watching. He was holding something Dick couldn’t see through the trees, but he had a sick guess. “Wally, I think that lady’s in trouble.”

Wally’s head snapped up and he looked in the same direction as Dick. Instinct took over and he raced over towards them. Everything moved in slow motion as he moved, the air whipping his hair in all directions. He disarmed the guy, lifted the lady and carried her to the other side of the park, and used as much of his strength to lift the first park officer he could find and set him down next to the attacker in record timing. Though he was impressed by his speed (and hoped his Uncle Barry would be too), something still didn’t feel right aside the fact that he was starving again. Should’ve gotten two sandwiches…

He raced back to Dick and stood, hands on his hips, trying to figure out what he was forgetting to do. Bad guy was stopped, lady was saved, law enforcement was-

“Wally… What the hell was that?” Dick asked, eyes still trained ahead on the situation in front of him, unmoving and unblinking.

That was it! Wally forgot to not be an idiot. His face flushed and he turned to Dick slowly. “Ahaha, babe! Okay. I can explain. Probably.”

Dick turned to him, arms crossed over his chest, face stern and unreadable. 

“Um-” Wally was flustered. He hadn’t been prepared for this conversation. It had to happen eventually, he assumed, but he would’ve liked to plan some kind of speech, defense, or even pick out his coffin beforehand. 

“You’re Kid Flash,” Dick bit, more venom in his voice that Wally was prepared for. 

“Uh technically, yes. But you know-”

“Why didn’t you tell me? All of those times I was stuck helpless or nauseous with worry because of you-”

Because of him. “Dick, I didn’t mean for you to find out like this, okay? I’m sorry.”

“When were you gonna tell me? Were you ever gonna tell me? Or were you just going to pretend that this wasn’t a thing. Every time you left me it was-”

“I never left you, Dick! I always made sure you were safe!”

“You were putting yourself in danger!” Dick was close to full-on yelling. But the sensible part of him (which was exceptionally difficult to listen to at all right now) was telling him how important Wally’s secret identity was, no matter how… confused Dick felt about it. How was he supposed to feel? Part of him was a little hurt, but most of him was terrified. What he needed was time to process.

“I want to go home, Wally,” he said softly after a slow breath. 

Wally blinked and swallowed thickly before nodding. “Yeah, I can uh- text my uncle.”

Dick stood silently while Wally pulled out his phone, his fingers moving rapidly.

Wally wanted to say something, but he didn’t know if opening his mouth was a good idea now. Every thought that passed through his head just felt stupid. He didn’t even know what Dick was feeling. Angry, hurt, sad, a combination? Wally was lucky Barry pulled up before he could get too far in his head about it, but it wasn’t soon enough to prevent a horrible twisting in his gut.

The entire ride was dead silent. Wally tapped his foot out of anxiety, not even realizing how fast it was until Dick told him to stop. It was the first word Dick had said since saying he wanted to go home, but it wasn’t the one Wally wanted to hear.

They stopped at Dick’s and Dick unstrapped without a word. Wally stopped him from leaving by grabbing Dick’s hand.

Dick sucked in a short breath, refusing to look at Wally. “I’m not mad at you, Wally. I know that. I just need to process. Figure out what I’m feeling,” he said softly.

They were relieving, but not enough to ease any of Wally’s pain. It felt more like an 'I'm disappointed' than 'I'm angry' and disappointment had a bit of a different sting to it... “Dick, I’m sorry. I was going to tell you, I promise. It just-”

“We’ll talk later,” Dick cut him off, pulling his hand away from Wally’s and getting out, shutting the door softly behind him.

“I was gonna ask if it’s a bad time to ask what happened, but I have a feeling I already know,” Barry said, looking at Wally in the rearview mirror.

“Can I please stay at yours tonight? I don’t wanna go home feeling like this…” Wally said, sinking back into his seat.

“I’ll talk to your mom. But there’s something we gotta do first.”

\-----------

“I just don’t know if this is a good idea, Uncle Barry,” Wally said softly that night. It was raining heavily, perfectly reflecting how Wally felt on the inside.

Barry glanced over at Wally in the passenger seat. “I’ve been around this block before, kid. It’s gotta happen sooner or later, and the sooner it happens, the better. Get it over with now. If he still doesn’t want to talk to you, we’ll deal with that from there. But it didn’t sound like that was the case. He just sounded confused, which is pretty reasonable if you ask me.”

Wally looked down at the small bouquet of flowers in his hands as the car came to a stop. “What if he hates me?”

“Then I think he’s either unreasonable or just needs a little more time and explanation. Don’t stall. Go get him, Wally.”

Wally looked up to see out the window. He could barely see through the water droplets sticking to the window, but there was a light on outside of Dick’s, so he knew at least somebody was home. His fingers hovered over the door handle for only a moment before he opened the door and walked out, half-running through the rain to stay dry.

He stopped outside and knocked softly on the door, which was cold metal that bit his knuckles from the pounding.

The door creaked open to reveal Dick’s mother.

“Wally? What are you doing here?” she asked, stepping aside to let him in.

Wally stepped in to get out of the rain. “Hi, Mrs. Grayson. Um… Is Dick around? We need to talk,” he said shyly.

“He left not too long ago. He said he needed to go think.”

“Okay. I think I know where he might be. Thanks, Mrs. Grayson.” Wally turned to go back outside but Mrs. Grayson stopped him.

“Good luck, Wally. I don’t know what happened, but he needs you now.”

Wally gave a weak smile before running out in the rain and stopping outside of the large circus tent. Rain slid off of it gracefully, making everything slick and damp. He searched around the back before finding a flap and stepping into it. It was dry inside the tent, but the sound of pounding rain was a reminder that the outside wasn’t as peaceful.

He looked around until he found the platform and tried to climb it carefully, nearly slipping with his wet shoes before he made it up. When he finally did, he stopped to catch his breath on his hands and knees, flowers barely still in his hands. He lifted his head to see Dick sitting, staring out to the center of the tent and Wally breathed a sigh of relief.

“Your mom said she wasn’t sure where you went. I thought I’d find you here,” Wally said, getting up and walking to Dick before sitting beside him unceremoniously, far enough away to not be touching him, or rather, not get him soaking wet.

“You found me,” Dick said softly. He was playing with one of his shoelaces with one hand while the other hung limp. He looked distant like his mind was somewhere other than his body.

“I came to- to talk. And apologize, if you’ll let me.”

Dick turned to Wally and noticed how soaked he was. He hadn’t noticed it was raining before, but now he could hear the pattering of raindrops on the tent outside.

“Will you just… just let me know what you’re feeling?”

“Is it bad that I’m still not entirely sure? I want to be mad, but there’s no real reason for me to be. You were keeping a secret that’s important and I understand why you couldn’t tell me, so I can’t really be hurt either. You’ve saved me before, you’ve always made sure I was okay during attacks, and then you’d go and save everyone else. You did everything right. I’m just…” his eyes flicked down, avoiding eye contact. “Worried about you. In a way that I wasn’t before. When we’re just us we can have each other’s backs easily. But when you’re out there in that suit or fighting criminals, who has your back? And don’t say the Flash, because he wasn’t there when Heat Wave attacked.”

Wally gnawed on his lip. “I don’t want you to be worried about me. I know that doesn’t mean you won’t be, but I have a lot of experience working with the Flash. I know how to handle situations and- and I do heal really fast too! Not that I get injured a lot… I mean sometimes I do but mostly I kick ass and-”

“Wally,” Dick said, the faintest of smiles tugging the corner of his mouth. “You’re rambling.”

“All I know is that I operate safely. There’s a reason I’m Kid Flash and not the Flash. I’m kind of just a sidekick now. I don’t even get to go on the big missions, even though I’m definitely ready for some of them. The Flash does have my back. He’s… he’s the closest thing I’ve ever had to a good dad. You know, one who doesn’t ground me for my English grade. He would if he could, though…”

Dick moved closer to Wally and leaned into him. “I just want you to promise me something.”

“Okay…”

“Please don’t get yourself killed doing this.”

Wally swallowed thickly. “I’ve already made that promise before, so I’ll promise it to you too.” He leaned down and kissed the top of Dick’s head.

“I love you too much to ever lose you.”

A lump formed in Wally’s throat and he wrapped an arm around Dick’s waist to pull him in closer. “I love you too, Dick.”


	14. As Long As You'll Have Me

“I look insane,” Dick said as he stared at himself in the mirror. The blue suit had looked much better at the thrift store than it did in his home all of the sudden. It wasn’t like his family had the money for an expensive new suit, but after hitting four different thrift stores, they’d pulled together a dark blue jacket, black pants, and a pair of black shoes that clearly weren’t as shiny now as they had once been. 

“You look so beautiful,” his mom said from behind him. She walked towards him and pressed a kiss to his head.

“You look handsome. Don’t stress yourself” his dad said from a nearby chair.

Dick bit his lip and ran his fingers through his hair for the millionth time. It just didn’t look right. He felt stupid. Maybe this was a stupid idea. He’d only ever seen school dances on the TV, he’d never been to one in his life and now he was going to start with prom? With the most beautiful human being alive? He’d look like a total fool.

There was a knock at the door and Dick turned and bit his lip. “Wait!” he said right before his mom opened it. “What if this goes horribly? I’ve never been to a dance before!”

His mom gave him a look and opened the door to reveal Wally standing on the other side, cheeks slightly pink. “Hi! Are you ready, Dick? You-” His eyes landed on Dick and his cheeks got pinker. “You look… really nice,” he said, smiling softly.

But Dick was just as breathless. “Um,” he said before chuckling. Wally looked so pretty, his hair done all nice in a well-fitted black suit. “You do too,” he said, getting lost in Wally’s eyes.

“Get out of here before you’re late,” Dick’s mom said before closing the door on the two of them.

Wally chuckled and took Dick’s hand, leading him to the car. “Dinner first. With my hot date,” he said, closing the car door for Dick before running around the car and sliding into the other side like the gentleman he was. 

Dinner had calmed Dick’s nerves a lot. Wally was as Wally, as usual, this time only a bit more blushy and a bit more flustered. But he was enchanting. He had definitely put time into his looks tonight and was trying his best to be romantic and sweet.

When Wally and Dick arrived at the dance, Dick felt a lot more comfortable than he had a while ago. Regardless, he was still very nervous. He’d never done anything like this before, and Wally was making everything look so natural that he felt like a fraud. 

“Babe. Everything is going to be okay,” Wally said, snapping Dick out of his thoughts. 

Dick smiled shyly. “Is it that obvious that I’m totally out of my depth here?”

“You can flip and turn on ropes hundreds of feet in the air and you think going to a dance is out of your depth? You’re totally ready for this. And I’ll be with you,” Wally said, beaming. He took Dick’s hand and laced their fingers together, walking up the large staircase into the dance.

The music was loud and people were everywhere; all of the girls were in fancy gowns while all of the guys wore nice suits, but despite all of the decorations and glam, Dick could only focus on Wally, who was the most beautiful person Dick had ever seen. But Wally’s attention had fixed elsewhere, and he winked at Dick before leading him over to a table where all of their friends were sitting or standing around some food and their bags.

“Dick! Wally! You guys look amazing,” Megan was the first to greet them with all smiles. Conner sat beside her and offered a gentle smile and slightly awkward wave.

“You clean up nicely, Wally. And Dick, you look great,” Artemis said with a small smile. 

“It’s good to see you both,” Kaldur greeted, barely loud enough to be heard over the music.

“Hey, guys!” Wally said. “I just wanted to apologize to all of you…” Everyone got silent and looked at Wally quizzically before he cleared his throat. “Because I brought the hottest date. And I definitely won prom!”

Dick rolled his eyes and blushed. “Wally,” he mumbled as Wally leaned in to kiss him, but he couldn’t help but laugh. He playfully pushed his boyfriend off of him before taking his hand again. He wasn’t ready to let go of that hand and feel like a fish out of water.

“We’ve all got to go dance!” Megan said, jumping up from her chair and grabbing Conner’s hand to follow. 

Wally looked to Dick, eyes bright. “Come on! You’re gonna love this! Everyone’s so busy dancing and shouting that nobody will notice us look like total idiots!”

They all got to the dance floor as the song changed, and Dick realized that he really, really didn’t know how to dance… But the look in Wally’s eyes made him realize that it didn’t even matter. Then and the fact that Wally danced more like an idiot than any of them.

After losing count of the songs and sweating profusely, the song slowed down and Wally scooped Dick right into his arms. The dance floor crowd was thinning out as single people went to sit or get food for the song. Dick then started to get a bit anxious again about people staring, because the pair was definitely more noticeable now, before making eye contact with Wally

“Hey, stranger. You want to dance?”

Dick made a face. “Actually, I’m kind of waiting for my boyfriend…”

“How about some bribery?” Wally leaned in and pecked Dick’s lips softly. 

“Hm,” Dick hummed. “That definitely works for me.” He moved in close to Wally and breathed slowly for once, letting the whole world melt away around him. Wally’s body was warm and firm and so familiar. He didn’t want to let it go any time soon.

“I told you you could do this, babe,” Wally said, just soft enough for only Dick to hear. “You having any fun?”

Dick nodded, eyes meeting Wally’s. “Yeah. I’m glad I came. I was afraid for lots of reasons. I was really scared that people would stare or something but… now I actually don’t even care.”

The look in Wally’s eyes said it all to Dick. “Me neither. I’m just glad you came with me. And I already told you. I brought the hottest date which means I definitely won prom.”

Shaking his head, Dick adjusted his grip on Wally to playfully pinch his neck, which made Wally jerk back before laughing. “All this about winning prom. I’m the one with the smoking hot redhead with me in the nice suit and definitely no hair product at all.”

“There is no hair product!”

“Sure there isn’t.”

Wally kissed Dick one more time as the song came to an end and the beat came back. 

“Alright. Time to say goodbye to everyone, because we’re ditching.”

\-----------

Dick didn’t expect to end his night this way, on Wally’s back as he carried him all the way to the bleachers behind the school. Wally put him down on the middle row, where there was a perfect view of the whole football field and track, and Dick kicked his shoes off.

“I should’ve worn thicker socks,” he mumbled.

Wally chuckled and leaned in to kiss Dick’s cheek and wrap an arm around his waist to pull him in close. “Thanks for coming out here, babe.”

“Why are we out here again?” Dick asked, looking up at the stars overhead.

“It’s loud in there, it’s quiet out here… it’s hot as hell in there, it’s nice and cool out here… Oh yeah and I can do this!” Wally tilted Dick’s head to him and connected their lips for a warm, deep kiss. 

“Definitely better out here, in that case,” Dick said when they pulled apart, foreheads still pressed together.

“Mhm. I know I said it all in there, but I’m glad you came. I mean really. I don’t know how everything is going to work once you leave, but we still got to have this.”

Dick tensed. “I guess you’re right.”

“Hey. What’s wrong? Did I say something?”

Dick huffed a sigh and looked back up at the stars twinkling above them. It had felt nice when they’d first come out, but now he was cold despite how warm Wally was beside him. “No. I’m just not ready to go yet,” he said softly.

“Well, good thing you’re not going yet. I’ll be here for you as long as you’re here, and as long as you’ll have me.”

“That’s a big promise, you know.”

“But it’s so worth making.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Hey, guys. I know it's been a while since I've updated this and this chapter is a little on the shorter side, but it's been a long time since I've been able to sit down and write. I'm hoping to keep posting until the end of this one! Some heart-warming comments really inspired me to keep going, so thank you for all of the love you've given this work so far!


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